Basketball in Bubbleville: NC State looks sharp in road win over UMass Lowell
A change of scenery didn’t seem to bother N.C. State one bit.
The Wolfpack was the latest team to visit ‘Bubbleville,’ an 11-day series of college basketball games being held at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. That court on the road, however, might as well have been in Raleigh because N.C. State looked right at home in its 90-59 win over UMass Lowell on Thursday.
The Wolfpack’s defense forced 13 turnovers in the first half and jumped out to a 24-point lead at the break. They finished with 19 forced turnovers, giving them 70 through three games.
“I thought we played a really good game today,” head coach Kevin Keatts said. “Especially on the defensive end. We wanted to come out with great energy.”
N.C. State held UMass Lowell’s top scorer Obadiah Noel to 10 points. Noel averaged 24 points through the first three games this season for the River Hawks (1-3) and got to the foul line 34 times total in those games. Against the Wolfpack, he attempted only eight free throws. He did, however, extend his double-digit scoring streak to 30 games, scoring his 10th point with 2:44 remaining. The game’s outcome had long been decided by then due to the continuing defensive pressure from the Wolfpack.
“I think our pressure is really heating teams up,” senior Devon Daniels said. “The more we can get in our press, take time off the shotclock, get them out their offense, I think that helps us a lot. A lot of teams don’t face the kind of pressure that we bring and we compete like that everyday in practice.”
Noel dealt with a combination of Jericole Hellems, Thomas Allen, Cam Hayes and Daniels harassing him all game. Noel, a senior guard, couldn’t get it going and the rest of the team followed.
N.C. State was just the opposite.
The depth of the Wolfpack’s roster continues to be their strong suit. Against UMass Lowell, 11 different Wolfpack players scored, led by redshirt senior guard Daniels, who had 18. Daniels came alive in the second half, connecting on 4 of 5 shots from the field. It was the second time in three games that he was the top scorer. He scored 29 in the season opener against Charleston Southern on Nov. 25. Hellems, a junior forward, scored 17 for the second straight game and freshman guard Hayes scored a career-high 17, connecting on 2 of 5 from three-point range and recording a team-high six assists.
“We have a lot of pieces,” Keatts said. “Our guys are playing hard, our guys are buying in. I like our energy we are providing each time out. I’m excited about it and I look forward to these guys continuing to grow.”
Strong runs for the Wolfpack
The Wolfpack used a couple of runs — including a 7-0 run after falling behind 3-0, and a 12-0 run midway through the first half — to pull away. Hayes and Hellems combined for 23 points to pace N.C. State early on.
Hayes hit his first four shots before missing one. Hellems picked up where he left off against North Florida last week, filling up the stat sheet with five rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block in his second straight start.
The only question in the second half was how much the Wolfpack would win by and how many players would score.
N.C. State will stay in ‘Bubbleville’ and play Connecticut at noon on Saturday.
“UConn is a really good basketball program” Keatts said. “They’ve got a really good team.”
The win over the River Hawks added to coach Kevin Keatts’ impressive nonconference resume. The Wolfpack is now 34-6 against nonconference teams in regular-season play under Keatts. In his first season at N.C. State, Keatts lost to Tennessee, Northern Iowa and UNC-Greensboro. The next three losses all came to ranked teams — No. 22 Wisconsin, No. 16. Memphis and No. 12 Auburn.
The team has won 23 straight games against unranked nonconference opponents. Keatts’ record improves to 41-8 when holding teams under 70 points.
AND ONE
Through three games, N.C. State has outscored its opponents 87-26 in points off of turnovers. The River Hawks came into the game averaging 15 turnovers per game and had 13 at the break.
LANE VIOLATION
This game wasn’t originally on N.C. State’s schedule. The Wolfpack was supposed to play William & Mary on Monday, but the game was canceled late Sunday night after a positive COVID-19 test within the Tribe program.
ICYMI
This was the third different starting lineup for Keatts. Against the River Hawks, he started guards Thomas Allen and Braxton Beverly, forwards Devon Daniels and Jericole Hellems and center Manny Bates. D.J. Funderburk, who started the first two games, came off the bench for the first time this season.
MAKING SENSE OF THE NUMBERS
19: N.C. State held UML to 19 points in the first half, the lowest scoring output for an opponent in the first half this season.
11: The Wolfpack is 11-0 all-time against teams from the America East Conference.
9: Number of players averaging 5.5 points per game for N.C. State.
13: Fast-break points for the Wolfpack
12: Number of 3s from N.C. State, a season high.
This story was originally published December 3, 2020 at 6:24 PM with the headline "Basketball in Bubbleville: NC State looks sharp in road win over UMass Lowell."
